Our vision

We envision a world where everyone has access to integrative healthcare and the tools to thrive.

Our mission

To close the global health equity gap, NWB builds the capacity of underserved communities and service organizations to overcome obstacles to health via training, education, direct care and cultivating sustainable resources.

Our values

We value integrity, honesty, innovation, respect and equity.

moving forward during the pandemic

NWB has continued serving our communities despite global challenges. Our team in Haiti has continued to operate throughout the pandemic and in September 2020 we began returning to help fill a gap in care in Puerto PeƱasco (Rocky Point), Mexico.

NWB Monthly Newsletter

where nwb works
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Haiti

Our full-time project since 2010, supporting the health promotion work of 4 NWB Community Health Workers and training local healthcare professionals through classroom and mobile clinics by Dr. Sara Polanco.

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mexico

Our longest-running project (2006) providing integrative care and education with our Community Health Worker Merari for the community of Puerto PeƱasco (Rocky Point).

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thailand

Supporting the work of Dr. David Mar Naw, the only physician caring for the mountain are northwest of Chiang Rai. Increasingly integrative care is restoring the health of the displaced hill tribe people.

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phoenix

Offering integrative care in a free clinic for uninsured LGBTQIA* people in concert with Peacework Medical. With a focus on supporting the health of transgender people, our naturopathic students and doctors work alongsideĀ 

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donation

Support 

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volunteer

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Fundraising

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Sean Hesler, ND
Executive Director

Dr.Ā SeanĀ X. Hesler is the Executive Director of Naturopaths Without Borders. After receiving his medical training from the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine in Tempe, AZ, alongside his wife Dr. Sarah Preston Hesler he moved to Haiti and co-founded the MamaBaby Haiti birth center in 2010. He received the 2019 Community Leader Of The Year Abundance Award, the 2018 American Association of Naturopathic Physicians President’s Award and the 2011 SCNM Alumni Award for Community Service for his commitment to global and community health throughout his career. In addition to sharing lessons on global health at universities and conferences around the United States, Dr. Sean also teaches medical students and professionals in seminars and at NWB’s sites in Haiti, Mexico, Thailand and Phoenix in addition to his Adjunct Faculty position in the department of Physician Assistant Studies at A.T. Still University.

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Sarah Preston Hesler
Director of Operations

Sarah Preston Hesler, NDĀ has been involved with Naturopaths Without Borders since 2007 when it was a student organization atĀ the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine where she received her medical degree. She was a founding member of the charity in 2011 and is the current Director of Operations.Ā She has worked with thousands of patients in Haiti, Mexico, Thailand and the United States and has led hundreds of volunteers with NWB. Dr. Preston Hesler is passionate about providing excellent care and health education to each and every NWB patient and strives to empower each volunteer and employee to do the same. Dr. Preston Hesler enjoys teaching PA students at AT Still University as an Adjunct Faculty Member and through the Naturopathic Mastery Series. She was a 2011 co-recipient of the SCNM Alumni Award for Community Service and received the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians’ President’s Award in 2018 along with her husband,Ā NWB Executive Director,Ā SeanĀ Hesler, ND. She speaks regularly throughout the United States and enjoys reading, playing the piano, traveling and spending time with her loved ones, including her rescue dog, Leia.

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Mariah Goncharoff
Development Director

Mariah Goncharoff is an experienced nonprofit professional, specializing in Development. An avid traveler who has worked in Morocco and spent considerable time in developing countries throughout the Middle East and around the world, the mission of NWB was a seamless fit and continues to be an inspiration to Mariah in her work. She currently resides in Portland, OR where sheā€™s trying her hand at urban homesteading, patiently awaiting the time she can again travel abroad.

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Vivian Kwan, ND
Board Chair

Vivian has been serving on the board of directors and was elected chair in 2018; also currently serving on the governance committee since 2020. She has been an active leader in volunteerism and fundraising since 2013. She has previously served on the board of other not-for-profits, including MammAlive Foundation and German Mills co-op nursery school. Vivian takes the vision and leads the team through strategic planning, creating a blueprint for sustainable growth and expansion of programs globally. With a respected credible voice, she inspires action while staying grounded in legal and financial information. In her early career she held positions in small business operations as treasurer, administrative management, CFO, but soon decided to begin her career as a naturopathic doctor in 2011. Vivian received her doctor of naturopathy from Canadian College of Naturopathic medicine is licensed through the College of Naturopaths Ontario. She currently runs a private practice in the Greater Toronto Area, Canada. Since volunteering her time in global medicine a passion was ignited and thus a strong belief in bringing equitable health care around the world and into communities in need.

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Kimberly Volk, ND
Internal Affairs Committee Chair

Dr. Kimberly Volk is a Registered Nurse and Naturopathic Doctor. Her focus is as a general family practitioner. She has worked over 15 years at SCNM Medical Center.Ā  Ā Dr. Volk has more than 25 years of experience in intensive care nursing. Bachelor’s in Psychology, Associates Applied Science in Nursing and DoctorateĀ of Naturopathic Medicine.

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Sierra Goncharoff, ND
Development Committee Chair

Dr. Sierra Goncharoff received her Doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine in 2019 from the National University of Natural Medicine. She is nowĀ completing her second year of residency at NUNM in Portland, OR. Prior to medical school, Dr. Goncharoff received her BA in Anthropology from Humboldt State University.Ā She has a strong passion for globalĀ healthĀ and providing medical care to underserved communities. After traveling to Haiti with NWB, she knew she needed to become a part of this organization.

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Jeanne Fuqua
Board Member

Dr. Jeanne Fuqua is a resident of New Haven and in private practice in Wethersfield Connecticut. Dr. Fuqua has been practicing naturopathic medicine and acupuncture for the last fifteen years. Besides maintaining a general practice, she is a consultant, speaking to audiences about various health concerns. She has worked with several health initiatives throughout Connecticut. She has a passion for community work and health and stays connected with community based health projects throughout the state. ThisĀ  strong commitment to community drives Dr. Fuqua to work to empower individuals on their health journey, but also expand health care options for the community at large. More recently she has taken that love for community work to broaden into global medicine. She serves on the Board of Naturopaths Without Borders and is currently working on opening doors in Egypt to increase access to Chinese Medicine and moxabustion. Dr. Fuqua is a graduate of University of Massachusetts in Amherst, received her doctorate from the University of Bridgeport, College of Naturopathic Medicine and a Masterā€™s degree from New England School of Acupuncture.

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Yves-Moliere Jean-Louis, NMD, MPH
Board Member

Dr. Yves-Moliere Jean-Louis was born in New York and is of Haitian descent. Though he has always been a jack of many trades, his passion for health care dates from his early adolescence. By 2009 he had earned a Masterā€™s in Public Health and a Medical degree; and now was on a mission to manifest his passion of healing unto the world. Since that time he has been substantially active in the medical/scientific world nationally and internationally, and still today pushes for the integration of diverse genres of health care both in the practical world of medicine and in academia. In 2018 he obtained a masterā€™s in science education and works for the NYCDOE . He is implementing a program for middle schoolers in the science track that will expose them to both conventional and alternative modalities and ideologies of medicine. Dr. J, is one of the longest sitting members of the NWB board and is pleased to be surrounded by so many dedicated and forward-thinking colleagues sitting on the newly expanded board. NWB is close to his heart as he was part of SCNMā€™s school chapter before NWB was incorporated, and loves the mission that the organization founders have upheld since its inception.

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Dr. Parissa Bunin, ND
Board Member

Dr. Parissa BuninĀ graduated with her B.Sc. in Biology from the University of New Brunswick in 1994. She was certified in Massage Therapy by both the Dunedin College of Health (New Zealand) in 1995, and Kine Concept (New Brunswick) in 1996.Ā Ā She went on to complete the four-year, full-time post-graduate program at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine in Toronto. Ā Ā She is currently a member of the Saskatchewan Association Of Naturopathic Doctors and the New Brunswick College of Massage Therapists.Ā  She has a general practice at her clinic where she works alongside her husband, Dr. Judah Bunin ND, at the Fredericton Naturopathic Clinic, NB, since 2003. However, Having lived in Africa as a teenager, she is passionate about going back to volunteer in Africa, and other underserved communities, where she brings awareness regarding naturopathic and preventative health care.

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Laura Kent-Davidson, ND
Board Member

Laura is a passionate cheerleader for new parents and advocate for the rights of the child. As a Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) and Naturopathic Doctor (ND, inactive) she spends her time consulting with patients in the area of human milk feeding, parental adjustment, and infant mental health. She also works to train other health workers and birth workers online and in-person in these areas, building on their capacity to support parents and infants in their communities. She currently splits her time between Toronto, Canada and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with her husband and two young children.

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Tamberlyn Blinsink
Board Member

Tamberlyn personally witnessed the dearth of access to medical care that many global citizens face while she was travelling in developing parts of the Caucasus. Seeing people suffer in geographical areas where western medical solutions were still decades away, prompted Tamberlyn to come back to the US to seek sustainable solutions that could benefit these communities now-even in the most remote areas of the world. During her doctoral studies in naturopathic medicine at Bastyr University, Dr. Blinsink, ND focused on nutritional and botanical medicine. She loves using that knowledge to empower communities and individuals to find health solutions that they need and that they can access.

Upcoming Events
Please select blog categories in "Blog" section
Become an nwb Volunteer

Volunteer with NWB in Mexico (Haiti and Thailand are currently paused). Upcoming dates:

  • May 28+29 (Memorial Day)
  • July 2
  • August 6
  • September 3+4 (Labor Day)
  • October 8
  • November 12
  • December 17
  • January 14+15 2023 (Martin Luther King Day)
30 (Demo)
Donate Now

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